


Lily Evans - Year One

by themixedmarauder



Series: The Marauders Era - Lily Evans [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Jily Ship, Marauders, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Marauders Friendship (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:34:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26375818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themixedmarauder/pseuds/themixedmarauder
Summary: all writing can be found on my Instagram @themixedmarauder
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Lily Evans Potter/Severus Snape, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Series: The Marauders Era - Lily Evans [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1916821
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5





	1. The Hogwarts Express

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the beginning. for best continuity, read Severus Snape - "Chapter 1: The Hogwarts Express" next.

Professor McGonagall was very detailed in her instructions when she delivered Lily’s letter. 

How to find the Leaky Cauldron on Charing Cross Road: “It will look like a broken down shop for your parents so you must keep a keen eye for it.” 

Lily furiously wrote down notes: which bricks to tap, how to exchange money at Gringotts, the shops where she would be able to find her school things. She could hardly believe how many magical things were in this one alley. 

She was most excited for her wand: 10¼ inches, willow, swishy, unicorn hair core, and “good for charm work” according to the wand maker. Soon Lily would learn how to cast charms!

Professor McGonagall also handed Lily her train ticket. Lily was unsure if she read the ticket correctly. Maybe it was the gold foiling and a trick of the light, but she swore it said Platform 9 ¾.

“That is correct. Find the barrier marking Platforms 9 and 10, and walk straight into it. If you are unsure, wait for another Wizarding family to come along and follow their lead. Now, the train leaves exactly at 11am on September 1st. Be sure not to miss it.”

Lily was sure to take those instructions seriously. Her and her family arrived more than an hour early. Lily didn’t want to run into a brick wall with no reference point, so they had to wait until the first Wizarding family appeared.

And it was as easy as that. Walk confidently into the brick wall, and you will appear on the platform. It was astonishing, the large red steam engine. Hogwarts Express painted in gold on the front. Owls littered the rafters, as if waiting for messages to deliver. Not long after Lily crossed the barrier, hundreds of other families walked through. 

Her parents were astonished at all of this, and found themselves chatting with what seemed to be other Muggle parents. Petunia however held her arms crossed tightly across her body. When Lily tried to apologize, Petunia simply yelled “Freak!” and ran off to her parents.

“Don’t mind her.” 

“Severus!” Lily spun around and saw Severus standing right there, his tight-lipped mother waiting haughtily behind him. “This is exciting, isn’t it?” Severus smiled and nodded to his mother. She returned a nod and walked back through the platform wall.

“This must be Severus.” Lily’s mother came up to the pair. “It’s nice to meet you. I would’ve loved to meet your mother.”

“Hello Mr. and Mrs. Evans. Apologies, my mother was in a hurry to leave. Lily, we should head onto the train if we want to get a good compartment.” Severus grabbed a hold of Lily’s hand. Lily slipped out of his hand to hug her parents tightly one last time.

“Love you mum and dad. I’ll miss you. I’ll write to you the second I get to Hogwarts. Watch out for my owl!” Lily grabbed ahold of Severus’s hand once more and they rushed onto the train.

Lily and Severus shuffled down the corridor and found an empty compartment. Severus insisted on stowing Lily’s trunk, and once they put their belongings away, they settled by the window. Lily kept waving at her parents intermittently. Right as the train began to depart, Petunia grabbed at her ankle in pain and her parents tended to their other daughter, not giving Lily a final wave goodbye.

“Tell me about the houses again,” Lily asked nervously as she watched her parents disappear into the distance. A wide grin spread across Severus’s face.

“Well Slytherin is the best. Anyone who does anything or becomes anyone in the Wizarding World is from Slytherin. They are ambitious and have real power. Ravenclaws aren’t bad. They’re smart, but they can be rather stupid as well. They spend all their time thinking in circles and never end up acting on anything. Hufflepuffs are the nice people. But they never really accomplish much. And Gryffindors, well they’re the worst. They don’t think before they act and they call that courage. But I will admit, a lot of powerful people come out of Gryffindor. The Headmaster was a Gryffindor,” Severus acknowledged.

Lily nodded at the answer, still nervous.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be in Slytherin with me.”

“Are the other houses really that bad? I don’t mind being considered nice or smart or brave.”

“No, you’re right. The other houses aren’t bad, Slytherin is just the best.”

Their compartment door swung open. Two boys stood there, the first an Indian boy with extraordinarily messy hair and round specks, and the other half Asian with perfectly coiffed hair.

“Mind if we join? The other compartments are full,” the boy with glasses stated, not waiting for an answer before sitting down next to Severus.


	2. The Sorting Hat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> all writing can be found on my Instagram @themixedmarauder
> 
> for best continuity, read The Sorting Hat chapters in alphabetical order:  
> Sirius Black  
> Lily Evans  
> Remus Lupin  
> Peter Pettigrew  
> James Potter  
> Severus Snape

“Lily Evans.”

Her face was stricken with anxiety. She knew that the students were being called in alphabetical order, and that they were in the E’s already. But the inevitability of her turn coming up was not a comfort. She looked at Severus one last time, and he gave an encouraging nod.

“Don’t worry, we’ll both be in Slytherin. I know it.”

She returned a shaky smile and let go of his hand. Professor McGonagall smiled at Lily as she walked up to the stool. Lily appreciated that the professor was up there, as they had already met all those months ago. Lily sat down and Professor McGonagall placed the Hat on her head. It was so large it dropped down to her nose, which she scrunched up to keep the Hat from falling further.

“Interesting. Hmmm. Now this is not something I come across very often.” The voice was a surprise, but the fact that it too had questions and uncertainty was, in a way, reassuring. This meant that maybe they could figure this out together.

What is it? Is there something wrong? Can I help you?

“Nothing wrong. But your strengths fit many Houses.”

Does that mean I have to choose?

“Not so fast. I have worked out many a tough call, and can determine this one as well. I see you are kind and hardworking, Hufflepuff would suit you well. But the mind you have, quite brilliant and clever. I can see you going far in Ravenclaw. Your brain will be challenged there. But no, there’s something else.”

What is it?

“I see you have stood up to your foes, and even your friends. Yes, courage, bravery, and integrity drive your heart. You are a…”

GRYFFINDOR!

Lily was shocked. The Hat didn’t even mention Slytherin. The Hat was lifted off her head and she immediately searched for Severus. Their eyes locked.

There was something there hidden in his face. Sadness? Dismay? Anger?

“Ms. Evans.” Professor McGonagall offered her hand to Lily. Lily took it and hopped off the stool. The professor pointed her towards the Gryffindor table, the students all roaring with excitement. Lily forgot all about Severus’s disappointed face. 

The Gryffindors’ elation was contagious and a large smile spread across Lily’s face. She sat down not far from Sirius Black, and the female prefect next to her patted her on the back in congratulations.

She hadn’t thought about Gryffindor all that much, because bravery was not the first trait that popped into Lily’s mind when thinking about herself. She thought Gryffindors were the type of people that went on adventures and quests. Those were things in books, not things normal people pursued. 

But then again, Lily had never known about magic. Maybe she would become an adventurer, now that she was a witch. The Hat seemed to think she was up for it. And she felt exhilarated at the possibilities.


	3. The Welcoming Feast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> all writing can be found on my Instagram @themixedmarauder
> 
> for best continuity, read AFTER Severus Snape "Chapter 2: The Welcoming Feast". Then continue onto Lily's "Chapter 4: First Years, Follow Me."

Lily stared in shock when the food magically appeared on the table. That was ten times, no - a thousand times more impressive than the little magic tricks she and Severus did over the summer. People started conversing in little groups, and she was trying to figure out which conversation to join. 

To her right was the skinny boy who Severus insulted on the train. The boy directly across from her was James, the boy who insulted Severus on the train. He had apologized before Professor Dumbledore gave his speech, and Lily was inclined to believe he was genuine. If not, he was a damn good liar.

To her left was one of the prefects, a Black girl who looked to be around 15 or 16 years old. She was busy answering a first year’s questions about the dormitories.

“Hi, I’m Lily,” Lily extended her hand to the prefect.

“Hi Lily. I’m Alice. Nice to meet you,” Alice shook Lily’s hand.

“Where are our dormitories?”

“We’re in the Gryffindor Tower. Frank and I will be leading you there after the feast.”

“And where are the other dormitories?” Lily asked.

“Ah, that’s a secret,” Alice smirked.

“A secret?” Lily was confused.

“Yes. Each house has a secret location for their dormitories, with a secret entrance. A password or trick to get inside. So remember that when you inevitably go snooping.” Alice meant that to come off as jovially. But it only irked Lily.

“Didn’t Professor Dumbledore just warn us not to be so divided? And yet we’re divided the second we arrive, and further divided by this secrecy?”

“You’re quite clever. Yes. There are certain divisions at Hogwarts, but for the most part everyone gets along.” The first year sitting across Alice seemed to disagree. 

“Well, no one likes the Slytherins.”

“My best friend was sorted into Slytherin,” Lily retorted.

“Now, now you two. Slytherins are fine. We do believe in a healthy dose of competition though, and the Houses most at odds with each other are Gryffindor and Slytherin. But I know loads of people who are friends with Slytherins. Mostly Ravenclaws,” Alice added. Alice turned to another student who asked her a question about ‘Quidditch’.

“Lily, what class are you most excited for?” Lily jumped at the sound of her name. It was James asking the question.

“Oh. Hmmm. I don’t know. I don’t know much about magic. I’m Muggleborn. So I guess I’m excited about all of it.” 

Lily froze. Severus had told her to be careful who she told about her ‘blood status.’ Apparently, some people viewed Muggleborns as odd. Severus wouldn’t delve into the subject more than that though. How was James going to react? Was he one of those who would have a problem with it?

“You’re Muggleborn? Brilliant! I can’t imagine what it must be like experiencing all this magic right now. I mean, I’m constantly amazed and I’m from a Wizarding family. I think I’m most excited for Defense Against the Dark Arts.” Lily was relieved and amused at how excited James seemed.

“Oh, I thought that was an interesting idea for a class. We don’t have an equivalent in Muggle school. I think I’m interested in Potions. Witches in books are always brewing potions.”

“Really? So Muggles do know about witches and magic?” It was shocking how shocked James was.

“Oh, well they’re in fiction books.” Lily paused, wondering if wizards read fiction books, or if because their lives were already magical enough there would be no use for that kind of literature. “But I always loved the three witches in Macbeth.”

“What’s Macbeth?” That’s it. There must be no Muggle literature at all in the Wizarding World.

“It’s a play by William Shakespeare. He might be the best known playwright ever.” Lily tried to hold back her tone of astonishment, not wanting to make James feel bad for not knowing such a thing.

“And you like it? I’ve got to remember that. Macbeth. Macbeth. Macbeth. And there are witches in this play?” Lily wondered if James had ever felt embarrassed for asking questions. She knew she felt embarrassed asking Severus about magic. Severus didn’t judge her for her lack of knowledge, but she couldn’t help but feel a little dim compared to him sometimes.

“Yes. And they make potions and can see the future. And the main character is both trying to fulfill the fate they give him and avoid it at all costs. It’s really good. I brought a copy of it here. You can borrow it,” Lily offered.

“Oh, yes please! Potions should be interesting. My entire family is made of potioneers!”

“I can’t believe people can be potioneers,” Lily’s smile grew thinking about the possibilities.

“Is that something you would want to do?”

“Well, I would want to learn about all other types of magic and wizarding jobs before I settle. There’s just so much I don’t know. Like, what’s the difference between Charms and Transfiguration? Is there a difference between a hex, a jinx, and a curse? And how often do Dark Arts come up in normal wizarding life? I asked Severus, but he never really answered that.” 

Lily turned around and looked across the Great Hall. She saw Severus’s face between the backs of heads. Before she even thought about it, she was up on her feet.

“What are you doing?” James asked.

“I want to go talk with Severus. It was great chatting with you James,” Lily smiled and walked across the Hall. And she felt like a lot of eyes were on her from the second she got up. She shook off the anxiety, knowing that her turning back would only call more attention.

She made eye contact with Severus and regained her confidence. But it faltered again. At first, Severus seemed happy but he took one sideways glance at the other Slytherins and his face changed. 

“Hi Severus!” Lily tried to keep her voice as normal as possible, but her nerves got to her and her voice cracked in the middle.

“Hi, Lily.” Severus said coldly. “What are you doing over here?”

“I thought I could join you.”

That’s when the hissing started. It took Lily by surprise. No one had ever hissed at her. And definitely not dozens of other children in unison.

“I… I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Severus dropped eye contact from Lily.

“Why not?”

“This feast is a time to get to know new Housemates. I suggest you go back to your table Ms.?” The boy sitting next to Severus was severely icy blond, and wore a prefect badge. Even his voice was icy.

“Evans,” Lily answered.

“Evans. I don’t think I know that name. What is your mother’s maiden name?” The blond boy asked. There was a gleam in his eye that was unnerving.

“Lily, you should leave.” Severus spit out before Lily could answer. He made eye contact with her one last time, almost as a warning. She had half a mind to stand there until the Slytherins made room for her, but she could feel tears pricking at her eyes and didn’t want to give them the satisfaction. 

She turned around as coolly as she could and returned back to her spot at the Gryffindor table. And that’s when the tears started spilling out.

The skinny boy next to looked at her in shock, and hesitantly patted her back.

“Lily? That’s your name right? Are you alright?” the boy asked. Lily didn’t know how to answer that. She heard a sniffle from across the table. She looked up and saw tears in James’s eyes.

“Why are you crying?” Lily asked, able to pause her own tears for a moment. James wiped the couple tears from his eyes and blinked away any other possible ones.

“ I just… I cry when I see other people cry. It’s involuntary. Don’t worry about it. The real question is what happened? Are you alright?” James asked.

“Severus… He didn’t want to talk to me. They all hissed. Who does that?” The tears seemed to have stopped at the rising anger in Lily.

“Some people are just immature,” Remus rationalized.

“We should roar back, see how they like that.” Sirius slammed his hand down on the table, and glared across the room. Lily looked over at the boy. This was the first time since the sorting that he seemed energized, like he was on the train.

“Didn’t your friend say anything?” James asked.

“He told me to come back here.” Lily looked over her shoulder to try and spot Severus, but she couldn’t find him.

“He’s such a prat.” James spit out. Lily whipped her head back. Even though Severus hurt her, she wasn’t about to start bashing him.

“He’s my best friend,” She pushed back. 

James gave her a concerned look, and shook his head. She grabbed some pudding, focusing all her attention on pushing it around her plate. She could feel James’s eyes on her, and when she peeked up she saw him glaring across the room with Sirius. 

There was a concerning level of conviction in both the boys’ eyes.


	4. First Years, Follow Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> all work can be found on my instagram @themixedmarauder !
> 
> for best continuity, read AFTER Lily's "Chapter 3: The Welcoming Feast" and BEFORE Sirius Black - "Chapter 2: The Dorms".

The lethargy in the Great Hall was palpable - conversations that started as a ruckus were now just a low hum, half of the children slumping over the table in exhaustion from the day. With that, the food disappeared off the tables just as quickly as they had filled just an hour prior. Alice and Frank, a Japanese boy who looked to be around 16 years old, stood up at the Gryffindor table, drawing the attention of all the first years.

“I’m Alice. This is Frank. We are your Gryffindor prefects. First years, follow me.” Alice began to walk towards the entrance door without waiting for the first years to get up, Frank staying behind to round up the back of the Gryffindors.

As they left the Great Hall, Lily looked for Severus but couldn’t find him in the crowd of students. She watched the other Houses part ways with them as the Gryffindors climbed the stairs to the right. 

“Frank?” Lily turned around to look at Frank.

“Yes?”

“How many staircases are there to get to the dorms?” 

“Alice, how many staircases are there?” Frank called out.

“142,” Alice stopped and turned around to answer the question.

“142 flights to get to Gryffindor Tower?” Peter asked exasperated. He, James, Sirius, and Remus were a few stairs in front of Lily.

“No, 142 in the entire castle. Gryffindor Tower starts on the seventh floor.” Alice turned back around and started climbing the stairs once again. Lily’s attention had been stolen by the moving portraits that littered the walls, and in a moment her foot slipped into a stair. 

Not on a stair, but into it. And now her leg was stuck. 

Lily let out a yelp, and Frank nearly tripped over Lily. When he realized what was happening he grabbed Lily under her arms and lifted her out of the stair.

“Are you alright down there?” Alice called from the top.

“What was that?” Lily exclaimed.

“There are a few trick stairs all over the castle. Don’t worry, you’ll begin to notice them after a few trials and errors,” Frank answered.

“How do you notice them?” Lily asked.

“Good question. Everyone look here! See how the edge of the stair looks fuzzy? Pay attention where you walk - if you see a stair like this, skip it unless you want to get stuck,” Frank stated.

“Right, there are more than a few secrets in this castle. Fake walls, hidden passages, trick stairs. You’ll learn them as time goes on. Getting stuck in one of those stairs is a right of passage, but also a pain in the -” Alice stopped herself. 

“Anyways, let’s keep going. On the note of stairs, we’ve arrived at what I affectionately call ‘the bane of my existence’ or ‘the reason I’m late to my classes’. Let me introduce you to the moving stairs.” Alice motioned upwards and all the first years looked up in fear and awe as dozens of staircases moved around.

“Wicked,” James exclaimed.

“Do the stairs know where you’re trying to go and move in that direction?” Peter asked.

“Absolutely not. I think the stairs actually know where you’re trying to go and purposefully try to stop you from getting to your destination,” Alice spit out.

“How is this logical?” Remus questioned.

“That’s something you’ll have to ask Rowena Ravenclaw. She’s the ‘genius’ behind this design. Batty woman,” Alice quipped.

“Young lady, show some respect for one of the founders of this school!” A portrait scolded. Alice rolled her eyes and continued going.

“Now stay close or you’ll get stranded.” Alice stepped forward on the next flight of stairs, and they began shifting immediately.

“Who was that portrait?” Lily asked Frank.

“Who knows. Their names are on the bottom of the portrait but they all like to socialize with each other so that old lady probably didn’t even belong in that frame. Feel free to ask the portraits questions, but I will warn you a lot of them are not very helpful. They like to monologue,” Frank answered. The group climbed five more flights of moving stairs before landing in front of one last portrait.

“Here we are.”

“That’s just another portrait,” Sirius pointed out.

“Yes. I told some of you during the feast, but all the different common rooms have a secret entrance. Ours is this portrait,” Alice stated. “She will open when you give her the correct password. This year’s password is Periculum.”

“The door opens to a password? Wouldn’t it be easy to break in then? If students in the other Houses know the password?” Peter asked.

“Yes, so don’t go around telling other students the password,” Frank rebutted.

“The password changes every year, and sometimes she likes to change it a little more often, so it’s important to stay on it. And the door only opens when you give it the correct password, so if you forget you could be stuck out here for a long time. Everyone, say hi to the Fat Lady.” Alice moved aside so the students could get a better look at the portrait. 

“Hello children. Absolutely honored to meet you.” The Fat Lady smiled and waved at the students with one hand, the other one clutching a glass of wine.

“We call her that?” Lily chimed in.

“What do you mean?” Frank asked.

“Does she not have a name? Does she not mind being called The Fat Lady?” 

“I promise you Miss I do not mind, for that is my name. And I do understand ‘fat’ is often a word of shame, but I do not see it as such. I do not get my worth from my figure. No, my worth comes from how extraordinary I am,” The Fat Lady declared.

“You are extraordinary,” Frank affirmed.

“Okay, now that you’ve all met, Periculum,” Alice said the password again. The portrait swung open to reveal an archway that led to the common room. The prefects and all the first years climbed through. As Lily stepped forward she heard a “mhmm” come from the portrait. Lily moved the portrait so she could see the Fat Lady.

“You are the first person to ask my real name in centuries,” the Fat Lady mused.

“So you do have a real name,” Lily stated.

“Why, yes I think I do. I believe in life my name was Brunhilda. But I have gone by Fat Lady ever since I was painted. I haven’t been Brunhilda in so long.”

“Would you prefer I call you Brunhilda?”

“I think not. No, that life is behind me. I prefer to be the Fat Lady who sings these days. But, thank you for your concern Miss...?” 

“I’m Lily.”

“Miss Lily. It truly was a pleasure meeting you. Now run along, you don’t want to miss anything.” The Fat Lady swung back open and Lily stepped through the portrait hole. 

The common room was what you would call the opposite of minimalism. The walls were deep red, but you would be hard pressed to realize that because of all the tapestries that clung to them. In the few spots that were tapestry free, there were shelves upon shelves littered with awards. Looking around the room, there was an abundance of arm chairs with one massive couch in front of the crackling fireplace. 

“Ok, the girls’ dorms are up the stairs to the right. The boys’ are to the left. All your belongings are in your rooms already,” Alice stated.

“How do we know which rooms are ours?” Peter asked.

“Your names will be on the doors. As first years, your rooms are at the top of the tower. Yes, yes, you have to climb seven more flights of stairs,” Alice answered as the students moaned.

“Look at it this way, by the time you’re a seventh year you will have no more will to climb those stairs. It’s only fair that the older you get the fewer stairs you have to climb,” Frank joked.

“And to any boys thinking about sneaking into the girls dormitory, there is a charm on the stairs that won’t let you up.” Alice disclosed.

“Is there a charm on the boys’ stairs?” Peter asked.

“No. These stairs were enchanted when the times were more...archaic. I can request for your stairs to also be bewitched if you’d like,” Alice added.

“Bewitched how?” James asked, mischievously. Alice raised her eyebrow and James backed off.

“If that’s all the questions then, go on to bed.” Alice clapped her hands, dismissing the students.

“Wanna race?” James exclaimed. “Ready, set, go!” 

With that, the boys went charging up the stairs. Lily, however, hung back.


End file.
